By the end of this unit students should be able to effectively work with any number of people as members of a team. Students will be able to recognize the consequences of their own actions and how those affect a larger group. Additionally, students will be able to develop the skills need to navigate conflict that arises in group settings. Along with that, students will develop their critical thinking skills to effective engage in problem solving. All of this is leading up to students being able to, as a group, identify an issue in their community and work towards addressing that issue together. This unit is based on the experiential education model. It is designed to get students active and learn through doing. This unit is designed to be used in an advisory type class and can be implemented over a series of weeks and doesn't need to happen in a quick succession of days.

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In this unit, students will examine and interpret past examples of storytelling, and will tell their own story by designing a comic book panel illustrating a momentous event or experience in their lives. As this unit encourages personal expression and imparts the significance of individuality and creativity, it was written to be the first unit of the term; it will give students a structured roadmap for the year, and will also give the teacher insight on where each student stands not only as an artist— but as a writer, reader, thinker, and class participant as well.

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This unit was designed to meet several needs in the art classroom: a.) to expose students to digital art and design; b.) to reveal instances where technology has altered the path of artists, c.) to integrate technology standards in the art curriculum. The central understandings for this unit are: a.) Art evolves as technology develops; and b.) Technology has provided a venue for the widespread production and mass viewing of art. Essential questions are: a.) In what ways has technology changed art? b.) Has art advanced/improved or declined/deteriorated with the advent of new technology? c.) Is the value of an artwork diminished when it is digitally manipulated? The performance assessment for this unit asks students to create a Portraiture Portfolio, collectively demonstrating how technology has evolved art. The first portrait is drawn on paper with pencil/charcoal; the second portrait is taken on black and white film with a manual camera; the third portrait is taken on a digital camera and then digitally manipulated through software on a computer. The final component of the project is to scan/upload the images to an internet class blog/gallery and comment/critique on the work of classmates. At the conclusion of the unit, students will be prepared to continue with the larger theme of Art & Technology or Digital Media.

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In this unit, students will get an introduction to reading music at the middle school level in choir. This unit is theory intensive and meant to help students strengthen their basic music reading skills to provide a strong foundation for the ensemble and its ability to do more difficult music. This unit is not preparing students for a concert, so it may need to be spread out depending on the school’s needs and required performances. Activities are meant to keep students engaged in theory. By the end of the unit, students will be able to sing a major scale using solfege and Curwin hand-signs; as well as identify and explain select symbols and vocabulary relating to pitch and rhythm, sight-read, notate, create, and evaluate select musical passages. We will cover sixteenth, eighth, quarter, half, dotted half, and whole notes and rests. We also introduce the staff, letter names, and step-wise motion in the Key of C Major. Students will get some basic understanding for reading music and have a better understanding of why the skill is useful.

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This unit is designed to purposefully set the tone of the classroom at the beginning of the year. As the year begins, I often get sidetracked with the business of starting a school year and the important process of orienting with the classroom, the teacher, and each other gets pushed aside. This unit is designed with the flexibility needed to allow for the business and logistics of the beginning of the year. It is also designed to allow for schedule changes. A student who enters the classroom after the first day will not be lost or behind. The unit is cohesive, but flexible and provides a plan for bringing students together and setting the tone for the year. The overarching goal for the unit is for students to get to know one another and to discover what their role in the classroom is for the year. The unit incorporates reading, writing, and communicating in order to determine students' knowledge and skill levels.

This 5 week unit is designed to help special education students understand that they have a responsibility to be an active part of the learning process and ask for help and tools appropriately when necessary. This unit uses frequent repetition, interactive homework, and role play to help solidify student understanding of the content. Students will learn how to ask for help appropriate through direct instruction of steps as well as opportunities to practice these skills in the classroom. Students will also learn when to ask for help through role-playing and analyzing scenarios.Repository CitationKilday, Kathleen, "Advocacy and You" (2008). Understanding by Design: Complete Collection. Paper 50.http://digitalcommons.trinity.edu/educ_understandings/50Creative Commons License

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In this unit, students will work to construct their own definition of a goal and from that spring into action in setting real, measurable, and motivating goals for their life. This unit is designed to not only teach students what a goal is, but to also explain why they are necessary. To emphasize to students that without them we have little to no direction and as a result we will not be led to success, but wander aimlessly. The unit is also structured to go beyond the preliminary stages of goal setting, but to actually see the students through to the accomplishment of these goals, and celebrating in their successes. Students will do this by establishing an accountability partner and write reflective journals as a means to monitor their progress. Meanwhile, students will participate in simulations to make the abstract concrete in understanding the importance of goals and explore second hand experiences of goal setting in literature.Repository CitationPhillips, Erin, "Goal Setting- Obtaining Your Best" (2008). Understanding by Design: Complete Collection. Paper 39.http://digitalcommons.trinity.edu/educ_understandings/39Creative Commons License

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